Assessing the damage

Maguire puts blame on Irish

Maguire puts blame on Irish

September 20, 2007|BOB WIENEKE Tribune Staff Writer

The best way Paul Maguire could explain what he saw in Notre Dame's embarrassing loss to Michigan was when it came time for he and his ABC-TV cohorts to name an Irish player of the game. "My comment was, the kid that ran the fake punt," said Maguire, who teamed with Brad Nessler and Bob Griese in calling the game. "Who the hell else deserved it? The other guy that we gave it to, the defensive back, he was making tackles nine yards down the field, but he had seven or eight tackles. "That is how bad it is." All the ammunition Maguire needed was in the weekly NCAA rankings. Last in rushing offense. Last in total offense. Last in scoring offense. Last in sacks allowed. Fifth from the bottom in passing offense. "If you just look at them, realistically look at them, they're the worst offense in all of football. Who's worse than they are?" Maguire, a former pro player who has been an analyst for pro and college football, said. "They just look terrible. They're a bad football team." It's a team that, according to Maguire, the Irish coaches could have prepared better for this season as far back as last season. Because Notre Dame lost seven starters off last year's offense, six of them seniors, Maguire says younger players should have been given more of a shot during lopsided games. "Because you know you're going to lose your offense," he said. "To me, is that good coaching? I don't think so. There is nobody to blame but themselves." Maguire pointed to Ohio State last year as a team that efficiently reloaded. Jim Tressel lost nine defensive starters, including three first-round picks, off the 2005 squad, yet still entered the 2006 season as the nation's top-ranked team, one that played for the national championship. "So when you look at the comparison," Maguire said, "I blame coaches for not getting prepared." He also blames them for not having better talent. Yes, he's heard the excuse that Tyrone Willingham is responsible for the talent in the upper classes. "I don't buy the argument. These are (Weis') guys. As soon as you get there you've got time to go out and find some kids. You've got to be prepared. You've got to see it coming. You've got to see who you're going to play. You've got to go out and recruit the right kids," Maguire said. "You are now 0-3. You are now the worst offense in all of college football, major college football, if you want to rank them up there with major college football." So what do you do to fix it? "You fix it with players," Maguire said, "but the most important thing you fix it with, is you take what you have, if you're a good coach, you take what you have, you cut everything down, don't make these kids think. There's too much pressure on these kids now. They're 0-3. The time for thinking is not now. It's just reaction. Take and cut your offense and your defense in half and play the players in the position that they can play. Don't ask your players to do things that they can't do, especially when you're 18- or 19-years old, you can't. "You just need to be patient with them and line them up," Maguire continued. "You don't have to walk out there with a big old sheet with 500 plays on it. Put a couple dozen plays that they can run. You're looking at a team right now, how sad it is, they've got to find a way to get a first down."